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With the sizzling sounds of salsa music filling the night air, the curves of art deco architecture on display and the Atlantic Ocean crashing onto 22 miles of beachfront property, Miami, Florida, provides lovers with a host of romantic settings. Typically mild winter temperatures give way to an array of outdoor attractions, many of which are open year-round.

Restaurants

Casa Tua (casatualifestyle.com/miami) is a South Beach hotel modeled after Northern Italian villas. The hotel restaurant serves gourmet food and wine from the same region. Twosomes can dine in a romantic setting, complete with candlelit tables, white tablecloths and an outdoor brick patio surrounded by lush greenery and lanterns hanging from the trees. In the Mandarin Oriental Miami, Azul (mandarinoriental.com) is an upscale restaurant that serves European cuisine with Asian and Latin influences along with more than 700 wine selections. With stark white walls, tablecloths and chairs, the interior provides floor-to-ceiling windows with sweeping vistas of the Miami skyline and surrounding Biscayne Bay. Couples may enjoy a meal on the outdoor patio while taking in the same views.

Accommodations

The Villa by Barton G. (thevillabybartong.com) in South Beach is a boutique luxury hotel with just 10 suites, all of which offer private butler service and Italian marble bathrooms with double-head showers. Some rooms also include private balconies with ocean views and nightly gourmet snacks. Lovebirds may enjoy star gazing from the private rooftop lounge or a dip in the mosaic-tiled and gold-lined swimming pool. King & Grove Tides South Beach (kingandgrove.com) is a 1936 Art Deco hotel in South Beach. Couples seeking romance can book the Amber Suite, which has an outdoor terrace for private dining and a marble soaking tub with sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean. Duos may also reserve in-room spa services or enjoy lunch or cocktails poolside.

Gardens

Couples may stroll through the 4.5-acre Miami Beach Botanical Garden (mbgarden.org), home to a Japanese garden with a bridge-covered pond filled with lilies and a native garden with a gazebo, orchids and fluttering butterflies. Special events throughout the year include outdoor Shakespearean performances and drawing and painting classes in the garden. Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden (fairchildgarden.org) is an 83-acre garden specializing in tropical plants like orchids, more than 700 flowering tropical flowering trees and 4,000-plus palms and cycads. Lovers can meander along the winding paths that cut through dense landscapes filled with waterfalls, streams, lush rainforests and open-air butterfly gardens. The venue also hosts special programming such as Valentine’s Day concerts, springtime afternoon teas and a chocolate festival.

Sightseeing

Numerous companies provide hot air balloon rides throughout the Florida area, including Sunrise Balloons Miami (balloonmiami.com). Excursions include views of downtown Miami, the Atlantic Ocean, Biscayne Bay and Florida Everglades. Romance packages include private marriage proposal flights complete with a champagne breakfast, congratulatory cake, personalized music during the flight and a “Marry Me” sign. Couples may embark on a romantic boat ride in and around the Miami area. Island Queen Cruises (islandqueencruises.com) has a host of adventures, including sunset cruises across Biscayne Bay with views of the downtown skyline. The two-hour cruise includes a bottle of champagne per couple, light appetizers and music.

About the Author

A travel writer since 2002, Jane Gosford has written countless articles for online pop-culture magazines and various travel-related websites, including Eurobooking and World66. Gosford also has experience in copywriting, having developed a series of articles related to network marketing. She graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles with a degree in theater arts.